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13:15:00 o'clock BST
Hearing The Wedding Present's Ukrainian folk music album
Your comments
It's been great to read all your comments, specially today when,because of the current heightened security situation here in Beirut and beyond, Kiruja - the Christian Aid security guru - has confined me to barracks.
He just soooo 'risk averse'. Keeps going on about 'not wanting my death on his conscience' and moaning that he might get in trouble with our director if I get killed.... blah blah.
This man was a commander of a Kenyan warship, a British navy-trained
diver, a parachutist and a military intelligence officer. He was hardcore. And yet these days he jumps if a car back fires. He's gone soft.
Thus, I've been stuck in my room all day watching BBC World, doing a couple of radio interviews on the phone for BBC Radio Scotland and drinking diet coke with my opposite number at Oxfam.
So your comments have been a godsend. Thank you.
What occurs to me is that I think some of you may believe I'm taking sides. I'm not. Maybe I should, of course but really, I'm only commenting on what I see and what I feel.
In recent days I've spoken to loads of Lebanese families who have fled the fighting, who've had their houses destroyed and seen their friends and family killed. They've battled north to Beirut or cities like Saida and are squatting in schools and parks and basements in grim conditions.
So I have to say I'm surprised at how lacking in anger most people are. I'd be going mad.
And I have noticed something else that should worry Blair and Bush. And please trust me, I make no comment about this - that is for you guys to debate. I'm merely reporting what people are saying.
Simply, loads of people have said they never, ever supported Hezbollah.
But they do now.
Hezbollah, like Hamas, offer social services and support to poor people
in the areas they operate - services their weakened governments have been unable to offer.
And rightly or wrongly, they have been seen as defenders of the people in the face of their all- powerful neighbour, Israel.
In the case of Hezbollah in this particular crisis, they are bringing food to people who have fled the fighting. They are also offering to rebuild people's homes destroyed by Israeli munitions.
As I say, I make no comment on the rights and wrongs of this. But people's reactions to this is, of course, positive. Their government is too weak to fight the Israelis and cannot feed them all. Remember 900,000 people have fled the war and need food, clothes, water, medicine and shelter.
So, put simply, Israel is recruiting for Hezbollah, not destroying it. It may win this battle. But it is unlikely to win the war.
Donate to Christian Aids Middle East crisis appeal:
http://www.christianaid.org.uk/middle_east
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I may be niave but are we not allowed to say Jewish, like we say Muslim. Are we allowed to say ethnic cleansing. I hope I don,t get arrested
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I'm not computer savvy but I found the need to explore the net just to find information about the current situation in the middle east. The news is full of the recent terriost threat to the airways but how often do they have to repeat the same story? I feel untrusting of the western governments and is this hype absolutely necessary or is it a ploy to distract the the general public from more deadly news! ie Iraq,Lebanon etc the list is endless
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Never in the history of human conflict has a Nation been sbjected to so much bombing and devastation that Lebanham suffered over the past few weeks. Surely it is time that Lebanham was armed with the same weapons of war that the Isralia Armed forces have, so that it would be a much fairer war . No wonder the state of Iran wants the Nuclear Bomb, in order to pretect itsself from any US or Isralia Attack. Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall inherit the earth, What a joke GR Poulton
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Never in the history of human conflict has a Nation been sbjected to so much bombing and devastation that Lebenham has suffered over the past few weeks Surely it is time that Lbenham was armed with the same weapons of war that the Isralia Armed forces have so that it would be a much fairer war . No wonder the state of Iran wants the Nuclear Bomb in order to pretect itsself from any US or Israli Attack
15/08/06 10:20
From my past being an Infantry soldier I can tell you all there are no winners in war. With such loses of life how can anyone claim to have won.
I do not think we can blame Isreal for their actions against the Hezbollah, Isreal had to stop the rocket attacks on their people. And I feel it was evil of the Hazbollah to take cover in the homes of innocent people making women and children tagets for the tanks and artillary of Isreal.
The Lebanese government need to kick out Hazbollah if they hope to have a lasting peace.